Still very hot after 37 degrees yesterday. Purchased maps and new speedo as the old one was misleading and killing my legs with it's inaccuracy.
Caught bus to VitraHaus which is like walking inside Domus. Thr design mag. They are watering the trees as I await the 11€ tour. ICOM for once not totally gratuit. I'm watching a man make an Eames chair by hand. Funny how often I sat on them at the nga over the years and here they are being handmade. They provide brollies for the two hour tour which I'm looking forward to as a contrast to the ruins of Rome hopefully to come. Should'a brought my bike. This place is huge.
The guide is Taiwanese and speaks many languages although fortunately for me conducts the tour in Anglais. We set off under white brollies to check out the working Vitra furniture companies many architect designed immense factories. So much in Basel comes from elsewhere. An enormous almost circular storage area with a cool white plexiglass curtain wall shining white in the extremely hot sun....suddenly emerges at high speed a forklift, .....the operator grins wryly as we all jump back in a tangle of parasols. Funny how my feet react to forklift noises. We ended an educative two hours in the watered cherry orchard. Well worth it.
I returned via the hotter than hot town to cool my eyes in the lovely Tinguely spouting pool...the crying my eyes out one was great. Beside up grand steps Richard Serra's marvelous waves of core ten steel.
Then abricot pie and perrier and cafe noir in a church full of young soldiers anti war screens. They invited me to eat it inside the church but my Jesuit conditioning made me afraid of inviting divine badvibes. Walked to get more maps, a hat and see more of this beautiful and happy place. If only I'd spent a bit of time learning swisse or german.
Tonight as I await a perfect gruyere omelette and salad washed down with an Italian chianti I am given a story. First the Beyerlers sold not one but two Picassos to finance the Renzo Piano rebuild (and every zhilling well spent) but before that....
In Basel, democracy apparently works..the residents get ballot papers about every two months....decades back they wanted two picassos for the Kunstmuseum and made a special petition to the artist himself who donated accordingly....Who knows all I can say is neutrality makes for great art collections and expensive omelettes.
Tomorrow according to the map I climb 700 metres towards Zoncolan. Use me like a camera and get some alpine zephyr zpirit.
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